Private School - has it been worth the money to you?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:But perhaps someone who is 'spiritually full' has fewer bills because he or she does not feel that it's necessary to buy a bunch of material crap, fancy car, fancy clothes, consumer goods, etc. Of course, he or she does have pay for food and housing and healthcare, but beyond that ...

of course success is not measured solely by your paycheck, but it's certainly more comfortable and enjoyable to not be struggling. and what about experiences that cost money but are spiritually fulfilling like travel, plays, nice restaurants, books, education and activities for your kids, etc.? there are plenty of great things to spend money on outside of the fancy consumer goods you mentioned.

[Anonymous]

Go over to the public school forum on this site and read about all the issues people post. Large class size, schools over capacity, program cuts, teaching to the test, facilities in need of repair, etc. For us private school has been totally worth it!

[Anonymous]

Put me in the no column. Very sorry I paid for private in elementary and middle school. Complete waste of money.

Pulled the second kid and I can really compare the depth of what they have learned vs the oldest. Math and Science are much better in public. Kid loves school and is achieving. Teachers are engaged but you do have to be a more forward type of kid which the second DC is.


All the extras are easily done out of school. Paying $35,000 is not worth it for those.

[Anonymous]

PP with the progressive educational philosophy here. What are the six schools that you think I should know about? As I mentioned, I never got a chance to complete my research. I am basing my knowledge mostly from those schools where friends, family members or colleagues send their kids. I did not grow up here, and I actually have not visited many privates here. There are some that really interested me, such as Lowell and Burgundy Farms, that really interested me. But, we live downtown, and any school that we choose would have to be accessible by public transport and/or very easily accessible from Georgetown. I'm not really into Waldorf, it goes to far for me.

[Anonymous]

Check out Sheridan, if you like Lowell. Similar philosophies, but there are differences. We liked both and ended up at Sheridan.

[Anonymous]

Some families carpool from DC to Burgundy, but mostly from the Capitol Hill area. Some kids come via the SSSAS bus system, but that would probably be an awfully long ride if it worked. A Georgetown commute would be sticky, but you can ask if there are others who do it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is kind of a silly question. Most parents choose to not drop 40k a year on private school when there is a good public school option. There are benefits of going to private school, but for most those benefits aren't worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Many kids have grandparents paying (I'd say most of the alumni kids and many others) and there are tax reasons for doing this. We have two kids in private and my husband and I earn $150,000 a year (there is absolutely no way we could drop $80,000 on tuition).

correct.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Check out Sheridan, if you like Lowell. Similar philosophies, but there are differences. We liked both and ended up at Sheridan.

I should have mentioned Sheridan, as it was on my original list (love the Shenandoah campus access), as was Capital Hill Day School (love the frequent field trips, a component shared by our current school), but I was lucky enough to get into our current school, which is the perfect fit for us, so I never finished the research. Unfortunately none of the busses to schools or camps are very convenient to is, hopefully that will change for other kids in this area, as it becomes more saturated. At this point though, if we change schools, which isn't in the plans, it would be for middle/upper school, so none of these options would be available.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is kind of a silly question. Most parents choose to not drop 40k a year on private school when there is a good public school option. There are benefits of going to private school, but for most those benefits aren't worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Many kids have grandparents paying (I'd say most of the alumni kids and many others) and there are tax reasons for doing this. We have two kids in private and my husband and I earn $150,000 a year (there is absolutely no way we could drop $80,000 on tuition).

correct.

Does having the grandparents pay for the legacy kids suggest the legacy kids aren't well off enough on their own to afford it, or that their parents were simply wealthy then and remain wealthy now?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is kind of a silly question. Most parents choose to not drop 40k a year on private school when there is a good public school option. There are benefits of going to private school, but for most those benefits aren't worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Many kids have grandparents paying (I'd say most of the alumni kids and many others) and there are tax reasons for doing this. We have two kids in private and my husband and I earn $150,000 a year (there is absolutely no way we could drop $80,000 on tuition).

correct.

Does having the grandparents pay for the legacy kids suggest the legacy kids aren't well off enough on their own to afford it, or that their parents were simply wealthy then and remain wealthy now?

I think it would vary between families, but I would bet that mine is fairly common. We can afford a very nice life, but private school would be a big stretch ($250k hhi). Not impossible, but not ideal. We save a lot, and we will have enough for a nice retirement, and could likely swing college if necessary. My parents were in a similar position when I was a child, but housing and school costs were lower. They have since continued earning and saving and had some inheritence and now have quite a nest egg that will be passed down at some point. Paying for schools is a tax-advantaged way to pass it down. We do not count on any inheritence, however, and would likely follow a similar trajectory where any inheritence would be an unnecessary windfall. So, yes, they have more money now, but that is more because of stage of life than anything else.

[Anonymous]

We pay full-freight so we don't sit around and mull over such inconsequential issues. If you can't afford go elsewhere. Not our fault your work 40 hours and get paid for 40 hours.

[Anonymous]

Full Freight Payer has replaced GDS Admissions Troll as the most predictable and unfunny poster on the board.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We pay full-freight so we don't sit around and mull over such inconsequential issues. If you can't afford go elsewhere. Not our fault your work 40 hours and get paid for 40 hours.

What hours do you work? It clearly affords you a lot of time on the internet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is kind of a silly question. Most parents choose to not drop 40k a year on private school when there is a good public school option. There are benefits of going to private school, but for most those benefits aren't worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Many kids have grandparents paying (I'd say most of the alumni kids and many others) and there are tax reasons for doing this. We have two kids in private and my husband and I earn $150,000 a year (there is absolutely no way we could drop $80,000 on tuition).

correct.

Does having the grandparents pay for the legacy kids suggest the legacy kids aren't well off enough on their own to afford it, or that their parents were simply wealthy then and remain wealthy now?

I think it would vary between families, but I would bet that mine is fairly common. We can afford a very nice life, but private school would be a big stretch ($250k hhi). Not impossible, but not ideal. We save a lot, and we will have enough for a nice retirement, and could likely swing college if necessary. My parents were in a similar position when I was a child, but housing and school costs were lower. They have since continued earning and saving and had some inheritence and now have quite a nest egg that will be passed down at some point. Paying for schools is a tax-advantaged way to pass it down. We do not count on any inheritence, however, and would likely follow a similar trajectory where any inheritence would be an unnecessary windfall. So, yes, they have more money now, but that is more because of stage of life than anything else.

This is the same story for us. On some level we have chosen jobs with lower income/higher quality of life and could both earn more if that were necessary. Fortunately grandparents are in a financial position to pay and it is a good tax savings to do so. The truth is, the gravy train will likely end with is, or at the very least with my kids.

[Anonymous]

I went to Exeter from public school, loved it, would love to send my children there. It was the best education I ever had, hands down. My kids go to DCPS now, in a bilingual school with mostly low income students. They are getting a great education, but everything people say about kindergarten being too rigorous is also true. They do a ton of worksheets, but they are learning at an amazing clip. I still want to send them to private starting in middle school because i think rote learning and overly structured classes at that point do more harm then good. I have a good career, but nothing special by DC standards. Im ok with that. The experience I had at Exrer is one I will never forget, and one I am deeply grateful for. Parents, if you have made this sacrifice for your children, and they are thriving, they will thank you.